Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren lambasted Republican Mitt Romney Monday as she introduced his general election opponent, President Obama, at a Boston fund-raiser.

Teeing off on the former Massachusetts governor, Warren told a full house at Symphony Hall: “Mitt Romney tells us, in his own words, he believes corporations are people. No, Mitt, corporations are NOT people. People have hearts. They have kids. They get jobs. They get sick. They love and they cry and they dance. They live and they die. Learn the difference.”

Obama also attacked Romney during his 40-minute speech, but his remarks lacked the bite of the line uttered by Warren.

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“Mitt, learn this,” she added. “We don’t run this country for corporations; we run it for people.”

The speech was a big moment for Warren, as she engages in her own hard-fought race against Senator Scott Brown.

She and the Massachusetts Democratic Party have sought to link Brown with Romney, citing quotes in which the senator has lauded the would-be Republican president, and noting the policies that Brown would support should he and Romney win election in November.

The speech also put Warren before her largest homestate crowd since she received the endorsement of the Democratic State Convention on June 2. The audience included major party activists and donors who will also be critical to her campaign.

In opening her remarks, Warren paid tribute to Obama, who passed over her last year to head the agency she established on his behalf, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, after Senate Republicans said they would not confirm her to the post.

“He fought for you, students and seniors, homeowners and veterans, community banks and credit unions, and for everyone who plays by the rules,” she said.

“Big banks and Republicans fought tooth-and-nail against us,” she said. “They vowed this agency would never become law. And when the money poured in, when the pressure mounted against us, and when we were on the ropes, President Obama stood firm.”

Warren added: “He planted his feet, he squared his shoulders, and he said, ‘We will stop the cheating, we will stop the trick and traps, and we will level the playing field for working families.’”

While she did not mention Brown by name, the president referred to him as he lauded Warren at the outset of his own speech.

“She has been a fierce advocate since before I knew her,” Obama said. “She is going to be an outstanding senator from Massachusetts.”

Glen Johnson can be reached at johnson@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @globeglen.